Posted on: July 22nd, 2010The Countdown
Author: Jake OravetzAs most hardcore hunters our season starts when it is still hot and most average guys aren’t even thinking about deer season yet. As I write this I am well aware that our arrow slinging brothers to the west are already in pursuit of a trophy blacktail in the hills of California.
We here at Back 40 have exactly a month and two weeks before we head to the badlands for Mulies and whitetails, every year there is a ton of planning and excitement that goes into this hunt and I thought it would be neat to make a several part article on what we are doing to get ready to the countdown.
As with most western hunts, the working out factor never really stops. We are either snow shoeing in the winter or hitting the pavement and the gym in the summer. Being in good shape can make or break your hunt. Working construction full time can make it tough to have the motivation and time to want to work out after work, but knowing what the hills have in store for you out west can keep just about anyone motivated. The way I look at it is this if I can just run a mile or two and hit the weights for a hard 40 minutes every other night that is better than coming home and sitting on the couch. I would love to be able to have a set schedule for a hard work out regimen but having a familiy to keep happy that doesn’t really work out.
Stay tuned to next week when we talk about our shooting sessions and what we do to get ready for some tough western shooting.
I’ve been slacking quite a bit lately writing for Back 40, chalk it up to winter! Recently I discovered that snowshoeing (who knew they have been around for thousands of years) is my new favorite activity when the snow gets ass deep. It has opened up a whole new world of places to visit in the winter, as here in the upper Midwest without proper transportation winter activities seem to be relegated to the ice fishing house.. 
As I was sitting in my very cold and wet tree the last night of bowhunting in MN I started thinking of the past season, and the first thought that came to mind was disappointment. This is only the second time in my life that I was not able to harvest a whitetail in my home state. Then I actually started thinking about all my hunts individually and yes there are some that were very uneventful but for the most part I actually had a decent season.
Does this situation sound familiar? It’s the first week of November, and you have taken the entire week off of work to chase the buck of your dreams. The first few days you sit all day long with nary a problem. However, by day three and four you are dreading the alarm clock going off. Hopefully in this article I can highlight a few things that have pulled me through those doldrum periods we all go through during the rut.